Need to Know: Boy Gorilla, part 3

Now, I already covered most of what I consider to be the core BG acts, but it would be really difficult to pin down the full line-up given their proclivity for new band creation. Every few weeks it seems there's something new going on and I'd be fighting a losing battle if I tried to keep up with everything. What's more, the Boy Gorilla family is growing all the time as connections are made with bands from outside of Portland and Salem. Some of these bands are really fantastic and you should be aware of them as they have been known to make the trek to Salem for the odd show.

First up in this category is a Seattle band called The Last Slice of Butter. It's a two piece act with drums and an electric bass for the most part. They also play over a tape of random audio they'll hook up to the PA at shows. I think I've mostly recognized old speeches, but there is other weird stuff on these tapes as well. In any case it's really hard to hear over the blaring, dirty and driving music. They've released their own CD which you can get through Boy Gorilla's store and they're working on a split 7 inch with the Black Black Black. Here's a video of the Last Slice of Butter playing the Ike Box last year:



I'm also really excited about Maggie Morris from San Francisco. She's a singer/songwriter that toured with Typhoon in California last summer. I hadn't heard any of her stuff until the Boy Gorilla birthday bash in April. Here's a video from that show:



I was so impressed I bought her CD that night. She's recently started posting videos on her own YouTube account. It's beautiful stuff. I highly recommend you check her stuff out and I'll be sure to mention if she comes back to Oregon.

Remember the Falcon?

A few years ago one of the most exciting local acts was a band called The Falcon. Known for the sexed up, dirty 70s rock and roll sound, they released a CD called Hello Panther before a spat with another band over the Falcon name and other drama put them out of action. For a while some of the band members played under the name Righteous Animal. Those days are over now as The Falcon made a triumphant return Saturday night to help The Space celebrate their first night as a licensed purveyor of alcohol.

The turnout was great, easily the most packed I've ever seen the venue. It was also the loudest I'd ever heard a band there. I made the mistake I standing right next to a stack of speakers and my ears were ringing all Sunday. The crowd was into it, the band was slicked up to hell and back and everyone bought drinks. A successful night by any measure. The Falcon have a few more shows lined up for the next month or two and I encourage you all to check them out. Hopefully Mickey, Chris, David and Timmy are working on a bunch more songs and will favor us with another record soon.

In the mean time, here's The Falcon playing "Alcohol and Nicotine" from Saturday night.

Need to Know: Boy Gorilla, part 2

In this, my second installment on Boy Gorilla, I must begin with the band that is by all rights the second tent-pole act on the label. Eskimo and Sons can't be considered a Salem band, but they did play some of their first shows here in town. They became involved with Boy gorilla when Danielle Sullivan, lead singer for Eskimo and Sons, met some of the guys from Typhoon at Portland State University. Her voice, incidentally, is absolutely beautiful. That, combined with Dhani Rosa's haunting lyrics create the band's signature sound. Here's a video of the band playing someone's backyard:



As may already be clear, there are a lot of "side projects" associated with Boy Gorilla. It's all very incestuous as various members of Typhoon and Eskimo and Sons form new bands together and start playing shows with a flexible lineup. I've already mentioned that the Ghosties live band includes individuals from both Typhoon and Eskimos. Another interesting side project you should be aware of is Doubledutch. Combining the songwriting talents of Dhani Rosa from Eskimos and Jordan Bagnall of Typhoon fame, the result is a more experiemental and electronic sound with hip hop inspired drum loops and a high level of production. Here's a video of the live version from the BG Birthday show:



Elec Morin is another Salem boy on the label. He's a singer/songwriter with more of a country/folk sound. He has also been known to join Typhoon on stage to sing or play the tamborine. Here he is playing "I'll Travel" during the BG Birthday show:



Stay tuned. There's still more BG stuff to talk about.

Need to Know: Boy Gorilla, part 1

Consider this a primer on one of the most exciting arenas in local music. True, pretty much all the people involved with the indie label known as Boy Gorilla have moved away from Salem, mostly to Portland, but their parents still live here and they play our fair town with some regularity. In fact, in April when Boy Gorilla was celebrating its 2nd birthday party the epic show was held at the Ike Box.

There's a lot to cover as far as Boy Gorilla bands. The label was essentially started to facilitate the release of Typhoon's first album. Their self titled, self produced full length debut is the first recording released under the Boy Gorilla imprint. If you've seen them live, and you really should, you know Typhoon is a really large act. The actually lineup has evolved somewhat through time, but there's a stable core of about 9 band members. That number can balloon to upwards of 13 on stage when the stars are right.

They sound, well, they sound absolutely brilliant. Their epic size translates to an epic sound when they want it to. There's a certain fascination with archaic forms in the song writing. They've written and recorded a number of "sea shanties". The lyrics of the first song on the CD are entirely in Latin which evokes the chanted nature of medieval chamber choirs. One of my favorite songs is simply called "Gypsy Song" and lives up to the billing with passionate fiddle work. As the band moves from song to song they swap out various instruments to achieve a certain sound. Here's an accordion, next we'll need some banjo, we've brought in someone to play a saw on this one, and don't forget the ship's bell for the big finish! Here's an example of Typhoon at their best from a show in Port Townsend, WA last summer:



Next we should talk about the Black Black Black. This loud and aggressive rock trio is actually a subset of the members of Typhoon: Kyle Morton, Devin Gallagher and Dave Hall. It is also one of the oldest bands under the Boy Gorilla umbrella. They've got a very distinct sound and their own separate following. They're playing at the Ike Box coming up on May 31st and I'd urge you to check them out. Here's a video of them in action:



Next in line would be Ghosties. This band is actually the brainchild of Devin Gallagher of Typhoon and the Black Black Black. So far he's produced a number of CDs as a solo effort, writing and recording himself on every instrument. There is also a Ghosties album of Typhoon remixes. Recently, the Ghosties have been playing live with a full band including members from several different Boy Gorilla bands. Here's a song from the BG 2nd Birthday bash:



Well, that's a start, but there's a lot more to talk about so I'll post again soon.

Eddie Vedder was there

So, what did you do Friday night? It was really hot, huh? Yeah. I decided to get out of town and, just my luck, there was a show at the Hawthorne Theatre in Portland I wanted to see. You see, the always brilliant Typhoon have been playing with bigger and bigger bands lately. In April they opened for The Thermals, but sadly I could not make it to that show. Even better, Friday they opened for Quasi. Yeah, that Quasi. The one with Sam Coomes from Heatmiser and Janet Weiss from Sleater-Kinney. The Quasi that toured with Elliott Smith and still backs up Stephen Malkmus. The Quasi that was the epitome of indie cool out of Portland during the 90s. Not bad, eh?

I was excited for the show in large part because, despite being a huge Quasi fan since David of the Widgets first suggested Featuring "Birds" to me, I'd never managed to see them play live. I can now say I've had that pleasure, and the additional pleasure of sitting right next to Sam Coomes most of the night while he sold Quasi merch and I helped with Typhoon's. I played it cool, though, like I wasn't impressed at all. That, and I was too shy to strike up a real conversation.

Typhoon played 2nd. There's like 12 of them so it took them forever to set up. I was a little disappointed by how short their set ended up being. But they played a few new songs and that was exciting to hear. Hopefully it means the new full length CD is coming sometime this year. Here's a video. I think I cut off the big finish, but it had one of those false endings.



Quasi's set was simply fantastic. Sam started on keys and they played a bunch of their classics. He was really wild and you got the feeling he had a lot of pent up energy from not having played live for a while. Janet pounded it out with vigor and at times it felt like the walls would come down around us. Halfway into the set Sam switched to the guitar and they started some new songs that, presumably, will be on a new album. They played an encore of older material to close out the night.

Oh, and apparently Eddie Vedder was in the audience.

In the Beginning there were the Widgets

And they were good.

It's been about 10 years since they started playing around Salem and their influence is still felt. I've been active in the local music scene since, well, since a bunch of my friends started a band called the Widgets. I created and ran their official website which I keep up for posterity. It's funny to go back and look at where they were playing when they first started. Salem just did not have any venues that interested in hosting local bands for all ages shows. It use to be that a band would need to rent out a space at their own expense if they wanted to play.

Things got better as the Widgets became more popular. Soon places like the Governor's Cup would gladly host free shows and the kids would pack the place to the gills. They could play on an outdoor stage during the Summer in the City festival or in some of the local bars. They even got enough attention to play a few gigs in Portland, Corvallis and Eugene. They never toured, though, and after two CDs the band broke up. They would remain a local legend, but that still meant a lot.

Today in Salem we have venues like The Ike Box and The Space which cater specifically to the needs of local musicians and fans. Many of the coffee shops downtown include live music from local and touring artists as part of their regular weekend business. And there are a lot of Salem bands, many of them featuring members who came of age going to Widgets shows downtown.

Lots of kids these days escape to the greener pastures of the Portland scene at their earliest opportunity, but they cut their teeth in Salem and carry that influence with them. Take the boys and girls of Typhoon, for example. They bill themselves as a Portland band these days, but we know where it really started.

And that brings me to today (well, tonight, properly). For a long time I've enjoyed the fruits of local music and I've always been sure to share my passion with as many as possible. Running thewidgets.com offered me an outlet for a while, but I wanted a broader canvas upon which to express myself, so I've started this blog. I plan on using it to record my experiences in the local music scene and hopefully share my excitement with the rest of you. I can't promise to restain myself to only those bands with explicit Salem ties, but I can tell you I rarely go to a show these days without a local act on the bill.

So stayed tuned, and if you're in a Salem band, feel free to get in touch!